As AI Replaces Animal Actors, Hollywood’s Furry Professionals Face an Uncertain Future
Film studios are increasingly using artificial intelligence and computer graphics to create animal animations in post-production, instead of bringing real animals to the set. This technological shift is leaving many professional animal trainers and coordinators anxious about the future of their profession.
A prime example is Rocco, a Saint Bernard-boxer mix whose credits include series like “The Morning Show” and “Veronica Mars.” While he now struggles to book film or TV roles, his life is far from idle. He lives in a bucolic valley an hour north of Los Angeles, where he spends his days keeping fit, socializing, and playing—like on a breezy July afternoon when a new green plush alligator toy sparked a chaotic round of chasing and tug-of-war with his companion, Porter. Rocco now “keeps busy” with the occasional commercial, a significant step down from his former Hollywood career.
He is one of many four-legged actors housed by Karin McElhatton’s Studio Animal Services, a company that supplies everything from scores of cats to a duck named Bob for major productions. “This has absolutely already had a major impact on studio trainers and the animal business,” McElhatton confirms. The industry was already grappling with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2023 strikes, and an overall business contraction, but many fear that virtual animals could be the final blow.
A few dozen miles south, Benay Karp, owner of Benay’s Bird & Animal Rentals, is witnessing a similar downturn. She estimates that job opportunities for her animals have plummeted to just 40% of pre-pandemic levels. While she specializes in small wildlife and birds, her work primarily comes from dogs and cats.
“It seems like I haven’t needed a woodpecker for three or four years, maybe even five,” Karp laments. “I have a flock of seagulls. In the past year, I only found work for them once, whereas before they worked constantly.” Demand is falling across the board, even for popular animals like dogs, cats, and horses.
For instance, director James Gunn’s rescue dog, Ozu, who played Krypto in the 2025 blockbuster “Superman,” was almost entirely created using CGI, despite a puppy stand-in being present on set.
Proponents of the technology argue that AI will eliminate animal cruelty and exploitation. “We know that AI, like any technology, can be used for good or for ill. In this case, this is one of the uses for a truly good cause—ending animal suffering in the entertainment industry,” said Lauren Thomasson, a film and TV director for PETA.
Critics, however, counter that audiences will lose the genuine emotional connection that only real animals on screen can provide.